NFL Football Betting – Week One Gambling – Detroit at Atlanta
BetUS NFL Betting Odds: Detroit -1
NOTABLE STAT: Detroit was last in NFL with 27.8 ppg allowed, 377.6 ypg allowed in ’07
KEY NFL FOOTBALL BETTING TREND: Detroit has covered four of its last 16 road games
The Atlanta Falcons (4-12 SU, 8-8 ATS in 2007) are looking to put the disastrous 2007 season behind them, and they can start to erase bad memories of the recent past in Week 1 of the NFL season (Sunday, September 7) when the play host to the Detroit Lions (7-9, 6-9-1 ATS in 2007) in an NFC matchup that is scheduled to begin at 1 PM ET at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.
At BetUS Sportsbook, the Lions are listed as a one-point road favorite.
Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this online wagering matchup:
* DET has lost seven of its last eight games SU
* DET has covered one of its last eight games
* DET has played seven of its last nine games OVER the total
* DET has covered four of its last 16 road games
* DET has played its last four road games OVER the total
* ATL has lost six of its last seven games SU
* ATL has lost 19 of its last 25 games SU
* ATL has covered two of its last seven games
* ATL has played its last seven games OVER the total
* ATL has played six of its last eight home games OVER the total
* ATL has covered seven of the last ten meetings
* DET has won 13 of the last 18 meetings SU
* Five of the last six meetings have gone UNDER the total
Detroit started last season like a house afire, winning six of its first eight games, then faded in the second half of the season, losing seven of its last eight. Meanwhile, Atlanta started weak and ended weaker. The catalysts were Michael Vick’s arrests involving pit bull abuse and coach Bobby Petrino’s complete failure to accomplish anything, followed by his sudden resignation to take the job at the University of Arkansas.
Both of these teams are in transition, and both would like to be able to shift gears and play some smashmouth football. Rod Marinelli has let go of offensive coordinator Mike Martz and his wide-open passing offense, in favor of trying to achieve more balance with new coordinator Jim Colletto. Running back Kevin Smith was drafted, but the Lions still have wide receivers like Roy Williams, Mike Furrey, Glenn McDonald and Calvin Johnson, which are a positive, and veteran Jon Kitna will still be at the controls.
Atlanta has a new quarterback in waiting, with Matt Ryan the third pick overall in the recent NFL draft. But they’ll start things out most likely with holdover Joey Harrington, another guy who was once the third pick in the draft, and who’s getting another chance, having been released, then re-signed by Atlanta. New coach Mike Smith is an old-school guy along the lines of Marinelli, but he probably has more components that can make his own aspirations of a ground attack work, namely a running back combo Detroit can’t match in Jerious Norwood and Michael Turner. Turner, who was LaDanian Tomlinson’s understudy in San Diego, is one of those backs who could easily be among the league’s rushing leaders in an offense that centers around his talents. Ryan will get his opportunity sooner or later, but in the early going, Harrington’s veteran presence might be an advantage. Really, the Falcons are not that far from respectability; they have some players on the defensive side who can perform and it may just be a matter of instilling a new attitude.
The Lions will probably have to suffer through more mistakes by a quarterback who is prone to them (Kitna threw 42 interceptions the last two years). And Detroit is still not a team to be trusted on the road, where after a season-opening win at Oakland, they proceeded to lose six of the last seven, with the losses coming by an average of 27.7 points. When you give up 56 points to Philadelphia, 42 to Minnesota, and 51 to San Diego, you can’t lay the blame at Mike Martz’s feet.
Both of these teams are good bets to be watching the playoffs on television come January, but Atlanta is the team that is going to be able to implement its new offensive plan first. With the Lions hardly road warriors, we can’t lay any points with them in this situation, so it’s going to be the Falcons getting the point, and our support, in the BetUS NFL football betting odds.
